1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a protective headgear, and more particularly to protecting a cold weather, helmet wearer while snowmobiling, motorcycling, skiing, etc. by closing the opening at the bottom of the helmet and around the wearer's neck without adversely affecting ventilation or visibility.
2. Description of Related Art
A helmet wearer while operating recreational vehicles or other equipment requires not only headgear for protection during an accident, but also headgear which provides weather protection usually in combination with another device. Helmet technology has improved over the years whereby today's helmets are provided with outside vents for breathing, fully padded inner shells, and fog free dual thermal face shields fully sealed at openings. Older headgear had a one layer face shield of clear plastic and any breath on the plastic visor would cause fog to occur on the visor. Also, air flow was required for the headgear wearer to breathe. Therefore, any device or skirt attached to the bottom of the helmet had to be made of course material in order to ventilate and to stop fogging, and such device or skirt required an opening in the back to allow expiration of breath.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,825,952 issued Jul. 30, 1975 to Pershing et al., and assigned to Deere & Company, a helmet skirt is described. A helmet for covering the entire head of a wearer has a flexible skirt releasably secured to the periphery of the inside of the helmet adjacent the lower opening by a male strip of material having the trademark name Velcro.RTM.. The inside of the helmet is provided with a female strip of the Velcro-type material. The skirt comprises a substantially rectangular piece of course knit material having a width sufficient for the skirt to extend between the helmet and the upper back and the shoulders of a wearer of the helmet. However, the course knit material provides for air flow and no heat retention.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,697,289 issued Oct. 6, 1987 to Nava P. Luigi, a weather protection device is described suitable for attachment to sports helmets to provide protection against weather conditions. The protective screen is removed through an aperture by opening a zipper and the edge of the screen is secured to the lower part of the helmet by suitable movable anchorages. The protective screen comprises a flexible element made of textile material which covers the bottom front of the helmet. However, this protective device is only partly flexible and comprises an envelope provided with an annular element adapted to forcibly engage the lower edge of the helmet.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,095,550 issued Mar. 17, 1992 to Jon A. Perlinger, a closure of wind resistant material for motorcycle helmets is described. A front flap opens to allow the head of the helmet wearer to pass through the closure into the helmet. The front flap closes with hook and loop or other fastener. The rear of the closure has an elastic panel to allow stretching as the helmet passes over the head. However, this helmet closure does not provide protection for the neck of a helmet wearer against cold weather conditions although it prevents noise, sand, dust, bugs, etc., from entering the helmet.